From Ruin to Reign Leander's Unbreakable Will novel Chapter 357

"Hm?!"

Reginald, Gareth, and the others all froze, their gazes sharp with disbelief. Even the several Transcendents hovering in midair looked visibly astonished.

By their senses, there were only a handful in the entire Southern Shore capable of matching them—Reginald, Gareth, Anton, Corwin, and Raphael. Yet now, someone had actually intercepted that full-force strike meant to kill Gareth.

"Leander?"

Both Gareth's and Reginald's expressions twisted in shock. Neither of them had imagined that the person who stepped in to block that nearly fatal blow would be the very "disgrace" they had cast out of their family—the one whose martial power had been abolished.

Leander stood in midair, gripping a spear in one hand. His fingers tightened slightly, and with a crisp snap, the weapon broke cleanly in two. His voice rang out, cold and even. "I may not be fond of the Ashcroft family, but you foreign b*stards think you can kill Astrian warriors on Astrian soil? You'll have to get through me first."

The next second, his arm trembled once more. The two halves of the broken spear suddenly reversed direction and shot back—faster and deadlier than before—straight toward the man who had thrown it.

"What—"

The man's eyes widened. The attack came too quickly, giving him no time to react. All he could do was channel every ounce of his innate vitality in defense.

A sharp tear echoed through the air. The fractured spear halves pierced through his protective aura from both sides, driving clean through his shoulders and bursting out in twin sprays of blood. He coughed up a mouthful of crimson and was sent hurtling backward, arms ruined, before three others rushed to catch him mid-air and barely managed to stop his fall.

Everyone stared, dumbstruck. Even the five members of the Arbitration Office wore expressions of disbelief, their composure shaken.

From a distance, Daphne, Ethan, and the others could only gape in astonishment.

Earlier, Leander had obliterated Elkins in a single move—an act so shocking that even then they'd barely managed to process it. But now he had casually taken the full-force strike of a Transcendent and crippled his opponent with one effortless counter.

It completely shattered their understanding of what Leander was capable of.

Since when had there been anyone among Astria's younger generation who could actually fight a Transcendent head-on?

Ethan's eyes flickered. His heart pounded violently. On the Astria Power Index, there was said to be one man who had already slain two Transcendents—one of them an Ember Transcendent. And that man also bore the surname Ashcroft.

Could it be…

He gasped, his gaze locking on Leander. Beside him, Daphne and Eira seemed to come to the same realization, their faces turning pale.

At that moment, the truth was finally spoken aloud.

Greed, who had yet to make a move, stepped forward from the sky, his eyes fixed on Leander. "So that's who you are. No wonder you were able to injure a Kindling Transcendent in an instant. The infamous Iron Sovereign himself has arrived."

As an Elite Arbitrator of the Arbitration Office, Greed had access to certain classified information. He knew well of Leander—the man who had once slain members of the Office itself and stood openly against them.

"The Iron Sovereign?!"

Reginald, Gareth, Raphael, and the rest of Astria's martial elite stood frozen where they were. Even the prodigies of the four major elite families, including Ethan and Daphne, stared at Leander in stunned silence.

Countless eyes—awed, reverent, and disbelieving—fell upon him as though witnessing the descent of a legend.

The young man who had just crushed a Transcendent with a single strike was none other than Jeff Ashcroft—the undefeated Iron Sovereign, ranked first on the Astria Power Index, and the unrivaled star of recent years.

"This… this can't be."

He had imagined this day countless times—meeting Jeff face to face. He had often wondered what the legendary man truly looked like in person. But never, not once, had he dreamed that the "disgraced brother" he'd long dismissed as obsolete, the one he thought buried in the dust of the past, would turn out to be him—the Iron Sovereign who dominated all of Astria.

"We came here to deal with the four major elite families—but since you're here, we might as well settle our score too! You slaughtered seven of our people and disgraced the Arbitration Office. As Elite Arbitrators, it's our duty to make you pay. I'd like to see whether the so-called Iron Sovereign is truly as 'undefeated' as they say!"

At that, Greed cracked his bone whip through the air. A massive wave split apart, cleaving a path nearly 300 feet wide.

The four Ember Transcendents beside him, together with the four Kindling Transcendents of the War God Sanctum, exchanged brief glances—and then, with a chorus of sonic booms, all eight shot toward Leander in unison.

Eight radiant forces streaked across the heavens, each one glowing with a different color, weaving into a blinding web that seemed to collapse the very sky toward Leander.

Seeing that, Reginald and the other Transcendents on the Astrian side surged to their feet, preparing to rush forward and share some of the burden.

But before they could take a single step, Leander moved. With a swift sweep of his finger, a cutting gust tore across the ground. A massive trench, tens of feet long, split the earth cleanly between them, severing their path.

Without turning around, Leander's voice rang cold and resolute. "When I fight, I don't need anyone interfering. Step across that line—and you're my enemy."

The words struck like thunder. Reginald and the others froze in place, unable to comprehend why Leander would refuse their help.

Around the Southern Shore, countless spectators stood stunned, all wondering if he was truly planning on taking all nine Transcendents by himself.

Leander paid no attention to their fear or doubt. He took one step forward, his palm lifting slightly, and an invisible surge of power rose from the ground. The eight converging strikes froze mid-air, suspended by sheer force of will.

"It's been a while since coming to Highcliffe that I've had a proper fight," he said, his tone calm but edged with amusement. "Today, I'll make an exception—and have a little fun with you."

His eyes twinkled as a faint smirk curved his lips. The fighting spirit burning within him flared to life once more.

After a month of silence, the Iron Sovereign had awakened on the Southern Shore.